There are trendsetters and those who follow in their wake. Successful businesses know that staying ahead is the basis for their success.

It comes down to innovation and flexibility in managing your business; combining IT and telecommunications technology to increase your business efficiency. T-Systems? IT and telecommunications solutions & services will allow your business to be flexible, providing you the freedom to continue to set trends and change as and when you need to.

Gaining access to flexible solutions, adding real business value, lowering risk and reducing cost are all aspects vital to the survival and growth of any business today.

T-Systems, the business customer brand of telecommunications giant Deutsche Telekom, effectively combines local astuteness and its global footprint to create the ideal flexible solution. Utilising the strengths of Deutsche Telekom, the company supports 1500 multinational clients ? each leaders in their respective industries.

The power of this relationship has already shown itself in the rapid expansion and extraordinary success of the company. In each year since 2001 T-Systems recorded revenues in excess of 10 billion euros. Not surprisingly, T-Systems is now one of the world?s largest providers of IT and telecommunications services. The company?s global reach extends to more than 20 countries, and with more than 40 000 employees worldwide, our ICT solutions give you the flexibility you require ? business flexibility.

Setting the pace in South Africa

South Africa occupies a unique place in T-Systems? universe.

South Africa?s IT and telecommunications skills have been recognised as being of high quality, and are rated among the best in the world.

Combined with true South African ingenuity and work ethic, this local subsidiary is an innovation hub for T-Systems International, and is proving to be the ideal place to test new solutions and services as well as the incubation of new solutions. Today, T-Systems International allocates a substantial portion of cutting edge project work and long-term services contracts to its South African subsidiary, which makes T-Systems South Africa one of the most successful business units outside of Europe.

An international prominence also benefits our South African customers, as they have access to global, end-to-end IT and telecommunications services and solutions.

T-Systems South Africa has won significant customer support and prospered with significant revenues over the last few years. It has chosen to focus its energies on providing solutions to the top companies in the main industries and the public sector, in South Africa and the rest of Africa.

Its support base includes over 700 employees and a presence in over 30 locations across South Africa.

As a company that truly believes in the future of South Africa, T-Systems is firm in its commitment to economic and social transformation in the country.

Playing a proactive role in integrating effective empowerment initiatives into our immediate network and the broader IT industry, T-Systems South Africa is proud to be involved in building a viable and sustainable country for all South Africans.

Equity Ownership: 25,1% shareholding by African Renaissance Holdings, since 2000Enterprise Development: Established 11 black empowered businesses benefiting from a project completed for lotto operator, Uthingo. Provided seed capital for black IT firm, Lechabile IT Services, and when firmly established, sold its 18% shareholding back at exactly the same price it had paid for it.Preferential Procurement: 44% spend goes to empowerment companies.Employment Equity: Ahead of own targets, leader in IT industry.Skills Development: Pioneered and established CIDA City Campus ICT Academy producing employable skilled graduates.Residual: Funding anti-crime programmes, sponsoring IT centres at schools and special initiatives like the HIV /Aids Workplace Programme

In another move T-Systems International emphasized its commitment to South Africa and its local subsidiary when it became the Official Chief Sponsor of the South African America?s Cup Team Shosholoza. The high-tech boat Shosholoza will not only bear the T-Systems logo at the highest-profile competition in international sailing from 2005 to 2007, but will also receive extensive support from its chief sponsor in the areas of information and communications technology and marketing. T-Systems? R100 million investment in South Africa over a period of three years in Team Shosholoza makes it one of the largest international investment in a South African sports team and certainly the biggest sponsorship in local sailing.

As a country we are facing many challenges. T-Systems shares those challenges as a corporate citizen. We believe by standing together and making contributions ? however small ? we can make a difference.